Monday, July 11, 2016

Feeding the Wolves

Hola mi Gente,

I sometimes wonder if I’m too outspoken
and if that’s the reason I have a hard time getting a righteous new gig. I
think about it a little, and then I say, “Fuck
that shit.” I am who I am. If I have to pay a price for that, I can at least sleep with a sound conscience.

Feeding
the Wolves

One of the tragedies of 9/11, the one
that never gets mentioned, was our collective response to the senseless
violence. As someone who was there
and who felt the earth shake as the Towers came down, as someone who witnessed
human beings throwing themselves from the inferno, and who breathed the dust…
Suffice it to say that as a nation we have not honored those who died that day.

As human beings we have this wonderful potential
for transformative change and a way to disentangle ourselves from our karma. At
the same time we also have this knack for falling asleep. Change is not an easy
task. It’s as if we’re continuously facing a crossroads, continuously having to
choose which way to go, what road to take.

If we’re honest, we would admit that
much of our journey is like a sleep walk: the same roads taken, the circular,
repetitive dysfunctional patterns of our lives. In order to make skillful
choices, we need a way, a compass, a set of practices that work to challenge us
and keep us out of comfort of automatic pilot. I think we first need to learn
how to be gentle with ourselves. We need to develop compassion for our
imperfections, and to embrace the not-so-pretty aspects that we work so hard to
keep from others. This is not to say we work to co-sign our own bullshit,
rather, it’s a way to recognize and honor our imperfections as well as our
positive sides.

Anyway, I first heard the following shortly
after 9/11. Perhaps you know of it. For me, this story really brings it home.
Perhaps this has some application in your life, right now, this very moment… If
you ever get a chance pick up anything
by the teacher, Pema Chodron (click here).
Believe me, you will thank me for a long time.

There was a story going around a few
days after the attacks of September 11, 2001. An American Indian grandfather
was speaking to his grandson about violence and cruelty in the world and how it
comes about. He said it was as if two wolves were fighting in his heart. One
wolf was vengeful and angry, the other understanding and kind. The young boy
asked his grandfather which wolf would win the fight in his heart. The
grandfather answered, “The one that wins will be the one I choose to feed.”

And this is our challenge in a
nutshell. It is the challenge we face as individuals and as part of this world
gone slightly mad. How can we draw upon our inner potential to see what helps
and what harms, what escalates war and aggression, and what lessens suffering.
With the precarious nature of the current times -- a planet in financial chaos
and the environment at the precipice of destruction, the time for sitting back
has long gone. And though you might feel there’s nothing you can do, know that
even the slightest gesture toward feeding the right wolf will help. Now, more
than ever, you need to understand and act on this human potential for transformation.

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My life experiences have led me to strive to help others move their lives in a positive direction, exploring opportunities that would otherwise be closed to them. I like to think I sit at the crossroads of the dialectic between knowledge and action. I hope that what transpires here is reflective of my beliefs.